Systems and methods for providing singulation of objects for processing using object movement redistribution

ABSTRACT

A processing system including a singulation system is disclosed. The singulation system includes a conveying system for moving objects to be processed from a source area along a first direction, a detection system for detecting objects at the conveying system, and for selecting certain selected objects for redistribution on the conveying system, and a movement redistribution system for redistributing the certain selected objects on the conveying system for providing a singulated stream of objects

PRIORITY

The present application claims priority to U.S. Provisional PatentApplication Ser. No. 62/489,121 filed Apr. 24, 2017, the disclosure ofwhich is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

BACKGROUND

The invention generally relates to automated, robotic and otherprocessing systems, and relates in particular to automated and roboticsystems intended for use in environments requiring, for example, that avariety of objects (e.g., articles, parcels or packages) be processed,e.g., sorted and/or otherwise distributed to several outputdestinations.

Many object distribution systems receive objects in a disorganizedstream that may be provided as individual objects or objects aggregatedin groups such as in bags, arriving on any of several differentconveyances, commonly a conveyor, a truck, a pallet, a Gaylord, or abin. Each object must then be distributed to the correct destinationcontainer, as determined by identification information associated withthe object, which is commonly determined by a label printed on theobject. The destination container may take many forms, such as a bag ora bin.

The processing of such objects has traditionally been done, at least inpart, by human workers that scan the objects, e.g., with a hand-heldbarcode scanner, and then place the objects at assigned locations. Forexample many order fulfillment operations achieve high efficiency byemploying a process called wave picking. In wave picking, orders arepicked from warehouse shelves and placed at locations (e.g., into bins)containing multiple orders that are sorted downstream. At the processingstage individual objects are identified, and multi-object orders areconsolidated, for example into a single bin or shelf location, so thatthey may be packed and then shipped to customers. The processing (e.g.,sorting) of these objects has traditionally been done by hand. A humansorter picks an object from an incoming bin, finds a barcode on theobject, scans the barcode with a handheld barcode scanner, determinesfrom the scanned barcode the appropriate bin or shelf location for thearticle, and then places the article in the so-determined bin or shelflocation where all objects for that order have been defined to belong.Automated systems for order fulfillment have also been proposed. See forexample, U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2014/0244026, whichdiscloses the use of a robotic arm together with an arcuate structurethat is movable to within reach of the robotic arm.

Other ways of identifying objects by code scanning either require manualprocessing, or require that the code location be controlled orconstrained so that a fixed or robot-held code scanner (e.g., barcodescanner) can reliably detect it. Manually operated barcode scanners aregenerally either fixed or handheld systems. With fixed systems, such asthose used at point-of-sale systems, the operator holds the object andplaces it in front of the scanner so that the barcode faces the scanningdevice's sensors, and the scanner, which scans continuously, decodes anybarcodes that it can detect. If the object is not immediately detected,the person holding the object typically needs to vary the position orrotation of the object in front of the fixed scanner, so as to make thebarcode more visible to the scanner. For handheld systems, the personoperating the scanner looks for the barcode on the object, and thenholds the scanner so that the object's barcode is visible to thescanner, and then presses a button on the handheld scanner to initiate ascan of the barcode.

Further, many current distribution center sorting systems generallyassume an inflexible sequence of operations whereby a disorganizedstream of input objects is first singulated into a single stream ofisolated objects presented one at a time to a scanner that identifiesthe object. A conveyance element or elements (e.g., a conveyor, a tilttray, or manually movable bins) transport the objects to the desireddestination or further processing station, which may be a bin, a chute,a bag or a conveyor etc.

In conventional parcel sortation systems, human workers or automatedsystems typically retrieve objects in an arrival order, and sort eachobject into a collection bin based on a set of given heuristics. Forinstance, all objects of like type might go to a collection bin, or allobjects in a single customer order, or all objects destined for the sameshipping destination, etc. The human workers or automated systems arerequired to receive objects and to move each to their assignedcollection bin. If the number of different types of input (received)objects is large, a large number of collection bins is required.

Such a system has inherent inefficiencies as well as inflexibilitiessince the desired goal is to match incoming objects to assignedcollection bins. Such systems may require a large number of collectionbins (and therefore a large amount of physical space, large capitalcosts, and large operating costs) in part, because sorting all objectsto all destinations at once is not always most efficient.

Current state-of-the-art sortation systems rely on human labor to someextent. Most solutions rely on a worker that is performing sortation, byscanning an object from an induction area (chute, table, etc.) andplacing the object in a staging location, conveyor, or collection bin.When a bin is full, another worker empties the bin into a bag, box, orother container, and sends that container on to the next processingstep. Such a system has limits on throughput (i.e., how fast can humanworkers sort to or empty bins in this fashion) and on number of diverts(i.e., for a given bin size, only so many bins may be arranged to bewithin efficient reach of human workers).

Other partially automated sortation systems involve the use ofrecirculating conveyors and tilt trays, where the tilt trays receiveobjects by human sortation (human induction), and each tilt tray movespast a scanner. Each object is then scanned and moved to a pre-definedlocation assigned to the object. The tray then tilts to drop the objectinto the location. Further, partially automated systems, such as thebomb-bay style recirculating conveyor, involve having trays open doorson the bottom of each tray at the time that the tray is positioned overa predefined chute, and the object is then dropped from the tray intothe chute. Again, the objects are scanned while in the tray, whichassumes that any identifying code is visible to the scanner.

Such partially automated systems are lacking in key areas. As noted,these conveyors have discrete trays that can be loaded with an object;they then pass through scan tunnels that scan the object and associateit with the tray in which it is riding. When the tray passes the correctbin, a trigger mechanism causes the tray to dump the object into thebin. A drawback with such systems however, is that every divert requiresan actuator, which increases the mechanical complexity and the cost perdivert can be very high.

An alternative is to use human labor to increase the number of diverts,or collection bins, available in the system. This decreases systeminstallation costs, but increases the operating costs. Multiple cellsmay then work in parallel, effectively multiplying throughput linearlywhile keeping the number of expensive automated diverts at a minimum.Such diverts do not ID an object and cannot divert it to a particularspot, but rather they work with beam breaks or other sensors to seek toensure that indiscriminate bunches of objects get appropriatelydiverted. The lower cost of such diverts coupled with the low number ofdiverts keep the overall system divert cost low.

Unfortunately, these systems don't address the limitations to totalnumber of system bins. The system is simply diverting an equal share ofthe total objects to each parallel manual cell. Thus each parallelsortation cell must have all the same collection bins designations;otherwise an object might be delivered to a cell that does not have abin to which that object is mapped. There remains a need for a moreefficient and more cost effective object sortation system that sortsobjects of a variety of sizes and weights into appropriate collectionbins or trays of fixed sizes, yet is efficient in handling objects ofsuch varying sizes and weights.

SUMMARY

In accordance with an embodiment, the invention provides a processingsystem including a singulation system. The singulation system includes aconveying system for moving objects to be processed from a source areaalong a first direction, a detection system for detecting objects at theconveying system, and for selecting certain selected objects forredistribution on the conveying system, and a movement redistributionsystem for redistributing the certain selected objects on the conveyingsystem for providing a singulated stream of objects.

In accordance with another embodiment, the invention provides asingulation system including a conveying system for moving objects to besorted from a source area along a first direction, a selection systemfor selecting certain selected objects for redistribution on theconveying system, and a movement redistribution system forredistributing the certain selected objects on the conveying system andby returning the certain selected objects to an earlier stage of theconveying system such that a singulated stream of objects may beprovided to an object processing system.

In accordance with a further embodiment, the invention provides a methodof providing singulation of objects. The method includes the steps ofmoving objects to be sorted from a source area along a first directionof a conveying system, detecting objects at the conveying system,selecting certain selected objects for redistribution on the conveyingsystem, and redistributing the certain selected objects on the conveyingsystem to provide a singulated stream of objects.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The following description may be further understood with reference tothe accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 shows an illustrative diagrammatic view of an object singulationprocessing system in accordance with an embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 2 shows an illustrative diagrammatic view of the object singulationprocessing system of FIG. 1 at later point in time;

FIG. 3 shows an illustrative diagrammatic view of the object singulationprocessing system of FIG. 1 at a further later point in time;

FIG. 4 shows an illustrative diagrammatic view of the processingconveyor of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 shows an illustrative diagrammatic view of an object processingsystem in accordance with another embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 6 shows an illustrative diagrammatic front view of the dropperception system of FIG. 1;

FIG. 7 shows an illustrative diagrammatic rear view of the dropperception system of FIG. 1;

FIG. 8 shows an illustrative diagrammatic view of an object distributionsystem in accordance with an embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 9 shows an illustrative diagrammatic view of a shuttle wingsortation system of FIG. 8;

FIG. 10 shows an illustrative top view of a destination location in theshuttle wing sortation system of FIG. 9;

FIG. 11 shows an illustrative diagrammatic view of an objectdistribution system in accordance with another embodiment of theinvention;

FIG. 12 shows an illustrative diagrammatic view of an objectdistribution system in accordance with a further embodiment of theinvention;

FIG. 13 shows an illustrative diagrammatic view of a portion of theshuttle wing processing system of FIG. 12;

FIG. 14 shows an illustrative diagrammatic view of the portion of theshuttle wing processing system of FIG. 13, with an object being droppedfrom the carriage;

FIG. 15 shows an illustrative diagrammatic view of an objectdistribution system in accordance with yet a further embodiment of theinvention;

FIG. 16 shows an illustrative diagrammatic view of a portion of theshuttle wing processing system of FIG. 15;

FIG. 17 shows an illustrative diagrammatic view of the portion of theshuttle wing processing system of FIG. 16, with an object being droppedfrom the carriage;

FIG. 18 shows an illustrative diagrammatic view of the objectdistribution system of FIG. 15 showing a destination bin positionsensor;

FIG. 19 shows an illustrative diagrammatic view of a flowchart showingselected processing steps in a system in accordance with an embodimentof the present invention; and

FIG. 20 shows an illustrative diagrammatic view of a flowchart showingbin assignment and management steps in a system in accordance with anembodiment of the present invention.

The drawings are shown for illustrative purposes only.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In accordance with an embodiment, the invention provides a processingsystem that includes an input system for receiving a wide variety ofobjects to be processed, and a singulation system for providing asingulated stream of objects for efficient processing of the objects. Infurther embodiments, the system may include an identification system foridentifying objects, and an output system for providing the singulatedstream of objects at desired output destinations. Individual parcelsneed to be identified and conveyed to desired parcel-specific locations.The described systems reliably automate the identification andconveyance of such parcels, employing in certain embodiments, a set ofconveyors and sensors and a robot arm. In short, applicants havediscovered that when automating sortation of objects, there are a fewmain things to consider: 1) the overall system throughput (parcelssorted per hour), 2) the number of diverts (i.e., number of discretelocations to which an object can be routed), 3) the total area of thesortation system (square feet), and 4) the annual costs to run thesystem (man-hours, electrical costs, cost of disposable components).

Processing objects in a distribution center (e.g., sorting or orderfulfillment) are applications for automatically identifying and movingobjects. In a shipping distribution center for example, objects commonlyarrive in trucks, are conveyed to sortation stations where they areprocessed, e.g., sorted) according to desired destinations, aggregatedin bags, and then loaded in trucks for transport to the desireddestinations. Another application would be in the shipping department ofa retail store or order fulfillment center, which may require thatobjects be processed for transport to different shippers, or todifferent distribution centers of a particular shipper. In a shipping ordistribution center the objects may take form of plastic bags, boxes,tubes, envelopes, or any other suitable container, and in some cases mayalso include objects not in a container. In a shipping or distributioncenter the desired destination is commonly obtained by readingidentifying information printed on the object or on an attached label.In this scenario the destination corresponding to identifyinginformation is commonly obtained by querying the customer's informationsystem. In other scenarios the destination may be written directly onthe object, or may be known through other means.

In accordance with various embodiments, therefore, the inventionprovides a method of taking individual objects from a disorganizedstream of objects, providing a singulated stream of objects, identifyingindividual objects, and processing them to desired destinations. Theinvention further provides methods for loading objects into the system,for conveying objects from one point to the next, for excludinginappropriate or unidentifiable objects, for grasping objects, fordetermining grasp locations, for determining robot motion trajectories,for transferring objects from one conveyor to another, for aggregatingparcels and transferring to output conveyors, for digital communicationwithin the system and with outside information systems, forcommunication with human operators and maintenance staff, and formaintaining a safe environment.

Important components of an automated object identification andprocessing system, in accordance with an embodiment of the presentinvention, as shown in FIG. 1. FIG. 1 shows a system 10 that includes aninfeed hopper 12 into which objects 14 may be dumped, e.g., by a dumperor transferred from a Gaylord. An infeed conveyor 16 conveys objectsfrom the infeed hopper 12 to a primary conveyor 19. The infeed conveyor16 may include cleats 18 for assisting in lifting the objects 14 fromthe hopper 12 onto the primary conveyor 19. Primary perception system 32surveys the objects 14 to identify objects when possible, to determinegood grasp points, and to select certain objects for repositioning onthe conveyor 19 in accordance with various embodiments of the invention.

The system also includes one or more programmable motion systems 20, 24such as robotic arms 21, 25, each of which includes a gripper 22, 26 forgripping objects 14. Each robotic arm may be equipped with sensors andcomputing, that when combined is assumed herein to exhibit the followingcapabilities: (a) it is able to pick objects up from a stream of (e.g.,non-singulated) objects; (b) it is able to move the object to arbitraryplaces within its workspace; and, (c) it is able to generate a map ofobjects that it is able to pick, represented as a candidate set of grasppoints in the workcell, and as a list of polytopes enclosing the objectin space. The allowable objects are determined by the capabilities ofthe robotic system. Their size, weight and geometry are assumed to besuch that the robotic system is able to pick, move and place them.

With further reference to FIGS. 2 and 3, the robotic arms 21, 25 areused to move objects either to the beginning of the conveyor 19, or topositions that will provide a singulated stream of objects 15. Forexample, FIGS. 1-3 show that an object 13 may be picked up by therobotic arm 21 and moved to an upstream portion of the conveyor 19, andshow that an object 17 may be picked up by the other robotic arm 25 andalso moved to an upstream portion of the conveyor 19. The movement ofthe objects 13, 17 provides a singulated stream of objects 15 byremoving selected objects and returning the objects to an upstreamportion of the conveyor.

Significantly, a singulated stream of objects 15 is provided (as shownat 30), and this singulated stream of objects may be monitored by aperception system 33, and may be delivered to an identification system34 (such as a drop perception system as discussed below) as a singulatedstream and without requiring that a robotic system place objects intothe drop perception system. Objects may then fall through the system 34onto, for example, a conveyor system 36, for further processing asdiscussed below. By providing a singulated stream of objects forprocessing, the system is able to more effectively control the objectprocessing rate, and reduce the incidence of errors that may occur, forexample if two objects in close contact with each other are perceived asbeing one object. The infeed conveyor 16 may also be in communicationwith the controller 78 and the robotic arm 24, and the speed of theinfeed conveyor 16 may be adjusted to either slow down if moving toofast, or speed up if system determines that more bandwidth exists for afaster input. The speed and direction of the conveyor 19 may also beadjusted as may be necessary to provide the singulate stream of objects.

As further shown in FIG. 4, the system may monitor the movement of theconveyor 19, enabling the system to maintain dynamic informationregarding divided areas or zones of a defined distance (Z_(d)) such thatthe singulated stream of objects is provided with one object 15 per areaZ_(d). This may be achieved, for example, by moving objects 9, 7, 5 and4 to upstream positions on the conveyor and may include moving objects8, 6 to locations that are more central to a respective area Z_(d). Incertain embodiments and applications, the system may move objects todownstream positions on the conveyor in the process of providing asingulated stream of objects.

As further shown in FIG. 5, a system 10′ of another embodiment of theinvention may include a primary conveyor 29 with cleats 31. The cleatsmay, for example, define the divided areas or zones such that when thesingulated stream of objects 15 is provided, it is provided with oneobject positioned within each cleated area. The primary conveyor 29 isotherwise similar to and functions like primary conveyor 19 of FIGS.1-4, and the cleats 31 may be similar to the cleats 18 of the infeedconveyor 16. The remaining elements of the system of FIG. 5 are the sameas those of FIGS. 1, 2 and 3 and bear the same reference numerals.

The correct processing destination is determined from the symbol (e.g.,barcode) on the object. It is assumed that the objects are marked in oneor more places on their exterior with a visually distinctive mark suchas a barcode or radio-frequency identification (RFID) tag so that theymay be identified with a scanner. The type of marking depends on thetype of scanning system used, but may include 1D or 2D barcodesymbologies. Multiple symbologies or labeling approaches may beemployed. The types of scanners employed are assumed to be compatiblewith the marking approach. The marking, either by barcode, RFID tag, orother means, encodes a symbol string, which is typically a string ofletters and numbers, that identifies the object.

The perception system 34 may be supported by stands or may be suspendedfrom above. As further shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, the perception system 34may include a structure 52 having a top opening 54 and a bottom opening56, and may be covered by an enclosing material 58. The structure 52includes a plurality of sources (e.g., illumination sources such asLEDs) 60 as well as a plurality of image perception units (e.g.,cameras) 62. The sources 60 may be provided in a variety ofarrangements, and each may be directed toward the center of the opening.The perception units 62 are also generally directed toward the opening,although some cameras are directed horizontally, while others aredirected upward, and some are directed downward. The system 34 alsoincludes an entry source (e.g., infrared source) 64 as well as an entrydetector (e.g., infrared detector) 66 for detecting when an object hasentered the perception system 34. The LEDs and cameras thereforeencircle the inside of the structure 52, and the cameras are positionedto view the interior via windows that may include a glass or plasticcovering (e.g., 68).

An aspect of certain embodiments of the present invention, is theability to identify via barcode or other visual markings of objects byemploying a perception system into which objects may be dropped.Automated scanning systems would be unable to see barcodes on objectsthat are presented in a way that their barcodes are not exposed orvisible to a single camera. The system 34 therefore is designed to viewan object from a large number of different views very quickly, reducingor eliminating the possibility of the system 34 not being able to viewidentifying indicia on an object.

Key features in the perception system are the specific design of theperception system so as to maximize the probability of a successfulscan, while simultaneously minimizing the average scan time. Theprobability of a successful scan and the average scan time make up keyperformance characteristics. These key performance characteristics aredetermined by the configuration and properties of the perception system,as well as the object set and how they are marked.

The two key performance characteristics may be optimized for a givenitem set and method of labeling. Parameters of the optimization for asystem include how many scanners, where and in what orientation to placethem, and what sensor resolutions and fields of view for the scanners touse. Optimization can be done through trial and error, or by simulationwith models of the object.

Optimization through simulation employs a scanner performance model. Ascanner performance model is the range of positions, orientations andbarcode element size that an identifying symbol can be detected anddecoded by the scanner, where the barcode element size is the size ofthe smallest feature on the symbol. These are typically rated at aminimum and maximum range, a maximum skew angle, a maximum pitch angle,and a minimum and maximum tilt angle.

Typical performance for camera-based scanners are that they are able todetect symbols within some range of distances as long as both pitch andskew of the plane of the symbol are within the range of plus or minus 45degrees, while the tilt of the symbol can be arbitrary (between 0 and360 degrees). The scanner performance model predicts whether a givensymbol in a given position and orientation will be detected.

The scanner performance model is coupled with a model of where symbolswould expect to be positioned and oriented. A symbol pose model is therange of all positions and orientations, in other words poses, in whicha symbol will expect to be found. For the scanner, the symbol pose modelis itself a combination of an article gripping model, which predicts howobjects will be held by the robotic system, as well as a symbol-itemappearance model, which describes the possible placements of the symbolon the object. For the scanner, the symbol pose model is itself acombination of the symbol-item appearance model, as well as aninbound-object pose model, which models the distribution of poses overwhich inbound articles are presented to the scanner. These models may beconstructed empirically, modeled using an analytical model, orapproximate models may be employed using simple sphere models forobjects and a uniform distributions over the sphere as a symbol-itemappearance model.

The operations of the systems described herein are coordinated by thecentral control system 78 as shown in FIGS. 1-3, 5, 8 and 10. Thecentral control system is comprised of one or more workstations orcentral processing units (CPUs). The correspondence between barcodes,for example, and outbound destinations is maintained by the centralcontrol system in a database called a manifest. The central controlsystem maintains the manifest by communicating with a warehousemanagement system (WMS).

If the perception system successfully recognizes a marking on theobject, then the object is then identified and forwarded to a sortingstation or other processing station. If the object is not identified,the robotic system may divert the object to a human sortation bin 76 tobe reviewed by a human.

With reference to FIG. 8, in a processing system 100 of an embodiment ofthe invention, objects 14 passing through the secondary perception unit34 fall onto secondary conveyor 36. Diverters 70 including push bars 72divert objects to shuttle sections 74 as appropriate. While only twosuch diverters and shuttle sections are shown, any number of suchdiverters and shuttle sections may be used. Unidentified objects orotherwise unacceptable objects continue along secondary conveyor 36 andfall into secondary exception bin 76. The diverters 70 are incommunication with the controller 78, which is in communication with thescanner 32 as well as the indexing position of the conveyor 19. Once anobject falls through the scanner and lands on the conveyor 36, thesystem notes the conveyor position of the object. The scannerinformation is processed, and the object (if identified) is associatedwith that conveyor location, and its processing location is identified(as discussed in more detail below). As the conveyor advances, thesystem will know when the object is in the line of activation of aselected diverter, and will activate the diverter to push the objectinto the appropriate carriage. The carriage then moves the object to theassigned bin as discussed in more detail below. In various embodiments,the diverters may push an object off through various other ways, such asusing a robot or a diverting guide, and in further embodiments, thediverters may pull an object off of the conveyor.

As further shown with reference to FIG. 9, each shuttle section 74includes a carriage 80 that shuttles back and forth between destinationchutes 84 that include guide walls 85 that lead to two rows of bins 90,92 on either side of track 88. Again, a central computing and controlstation 78 communicates with other computers distributed in the othercomponents, and also communicates with the customer information system,provides a user interface, and coordinates all processes. As shown inFIG. 9, each processing bin 90, 92 of each shuttle section 74 mayinclude a pull out drawer 82 from which each of the two opposingprocessing bins (e.g., 90, 92) may be accessed and emptied. Eachpull-out drawer 82 may also include light indicators 94 to indicate whenthe processing bin (e.g., 90, 92) is either full or is ready to beemptied based on system heuristics, e.g., that the bin is statisticallyunlikely to receive another object soon. In other embodiments, suchlights may be positioned above the respective bin. Each drawer may alsoinclude a lock 99 that a person must unlock to pull out the drawer 82.The lock includes sensors that communicate with the controller 78, andwhen a drawer is unlocked, the system knows not to sort to either bin inthe unlocked drawer. This way, the system may continue operating whiledrawers are pulled and bins are emptied.

As shown in FIG. 10, each bin (90, 92), may include one or more pairs ofemitters 96 and sensors 98 at the top of the bin. Output from a sensor98 that is representative of a prolonged interruption from theassociated source, may be used to determine that the bin is full.

FIG. 11 shows a processing system 100′ similar to that shown in FIG. 8(where the identical components have the same reference numbers), exceptthat the shuttle sections 74′ of FIG. 8 are positioned alongside(parallel with) the conveyor 36′. In particular, a first diverter 70′may push an object into a carriage 80′ at one end of a shuttle section74′, while a second diverter 70″ may push an object into a carriage 80″in the middle of a shuttle section 74″. In accordance with furtherembodiments, many different arrangements are possible, and each iswithin the spirit and scope of the present invention. Each drawer 82′and 82″ may as discussed below, and the indicator lights 84′, 84″ may belocated above the drawers 82′, 82″.

Similarly, the diverters 70′, 70″ are in communication with thecontroller 78, which is in communication with the scanner 34 as well asthe indexing position of the conveyor 36′. Again, in variousembodiments, the diverters may push an object off through various otherways, such as using a robot or a diverting guide, and in furtherembodiments, the diverters may pull an object off of the conveyor. Oncean object falls through the scanner and lands of the conveyor, thesystem notes the conveyor position of the object. The scannerinformation is processed, and the object (if identified) is associatedwith that conveyor location, and its processing location is identified(as discussed in more detail below). Again, as the conveyor advances,the system will know when the object is in the line of activation of aselected diverter, and will activate the diverter to push the objectinto the appropriate carriage. The carriage then moves the object to theassigned bin as discussed in more detail below.

FIG. 12 shows a processing system 200 similar to that of systems 100,100′ (with similar elements bearing similar reference numerals), exceptthat the system 200 includes carriages 101 that ride along a track(e.g., a circular track) 102. When a carriage 101 is positioned belowthe drop scanner 34, an object falls through the scanner and isidentified as discussed above. The carriage 101 is then moved betweenrows of bins 104. With further reference to FIGS. 13 and 14, when thecarriage 101 is moved to a desired processing location, the carriagestops (or slows), and tilts to dump the object 14 into the bin 104 (asshown in FIG. 14) similar to the action of carriage 80 discussed above.Again, the object 14 may include indicia 15 such as a barcode that wasdetected by the scanner 34. Similar to the embodiment of FIG. 9, guidewalls may be used to guide the object as it falls so that the objectdoes not accidently drop into a neighboring bin, and sensors (e.g.,emitter/detector pairs) 96, 98 may be employed to detect when a bin isfull as discussed above.

FIG. 15 shows a processing system 200′ similar to that of systems 100,100′ and 200 (with similar elements bearing similar reference numerals),except that the system 200′ includes carriages 202 that ride along atrack (e.g., a circular track) 204. When a carriage 202 is positionedbelow the drop scanner 34, an object falls through the scanner and isidentified as discussed above. The carriage 202 is then moved betweenrows of bins 206, each of which may include, for example a pre-placedbag. With further reference to FIGS. 16 and 17, when the carriage 202 ismoved to a desired processing location, the carriage stops (or slows),and dumps the object 14 into the bin 206 (as shown in FIG. 16) similarto the action of carriage 80 discussed above. Again, the object 14 mayinclude indicia 15 such as a barcode that was detected by the scanner34.

As further shown in FIG. 18, when a bins 206 is full (e.g., by sensorsas discussed above, or by the system knowing how many items are in thebin, or by having a human simply decide that a bin is full) a human maythen pick up the bin 206. Upon removing the bin 206, a sensor system 208under the bin will indicate that the bin (that specific bin) has beenremoved. The system may continue processing other bins, but will knownot to sort to the removed bin. A new empty bin 210 may then be replacedon the opened location. Because the assignment of bin processinglocations is dynamic and flexible, no further registration is required.As soon as the bin 210 is placed on the sensor 208, the system will knowthat there is a new unassigned bin ready for dynamic processing asdiscussed further below.

The assignment of processing bins may also be dynamic. For example,systems in accordance with further embodiments, provide improvedtransport and conveyor systems to provide a singulated stream ofobjects, and to provide dynamically changing patterns of objecthandling, with resulting efficiencies in the sortation process, lowerspace requirements, lower demand for manual operations, and as aconsequence, lower capital and operating costs for the entire system.

During use, the sorting station may select an object and then identifythe selected object by the perception system 32 (or may detect anidentity of an object using a scanner on the articulated arm, or may usethe robotic arm to move the object to a detection device). If the objecthas an assigned bin or a new bin is available, then the end effectorwill drop the object from the carriage into the bin. If the object isnot identified the object may be dropped into a designated exception binthat is part of the shuttle wing, or the object may continue travelingin the carriage 202 along the track 204 and later be dropped into anexception bin 76 (e.g., as discussed above with reference to FIG. 8).

The system assigns a bin to the object if a new bin is available and theobject is not yet assigned a bin at that sorting station. What issignificant is that the sorting station is not pre-assigned a large setof collection bins assigned to all possible objects that may appear inthe input path. Further, the central controller may employ a widevariety of heuristics that may further shape the process of dynamicallyassigning objects to collection bins as discussed in more detail below.Once bins are either filled or otherwise completed, the completed binsare signaled as being done and ready for further processing (e.g., bylights 92 associated with bin 90, 92 in FIG. 10).

As shown in FIG. 19, a sortation process of the invention at a sortingstation may begin (step 400) by providing a singulated stream of objectsthat, one at a time, drop an object into the drop scanner (step 402).The system then identifies the new object (step 404). The system thenwill determine whether the object is yet assigned to any collection bin(step 406). If not, the system will determine whether a next bin isavailable (step 408). If no next bin is available (step 410), therobotic system will return the object to the input buffer (step 410) andreturn to step 402. Alternatively, the system can pick one of thecollection bins that is in process and decide that it can be emptied tobe reused for the object in hand, at which point the control system canempty the collection bin or signal a human worker to do it. If a nextbin is available (and the system may permit any number of bins perstation), the system will then assign the object to a next bin (step412). The system then places the object into the assigned bin (step414). The system then returns to step 402 until finished. Again, incertain embodiments, the secondary conveyor may be an indexed conveyorthat moves in increments each time an object is dropped onto theconveyor. The system may then register the identity of the object,access a warehouse manifest, and determine an assigned bin location orassign a new bin location.

A process of the overall control system is shown, for example, in FIG.20. The overall control system may begin (step 500) by permitting a newcollection bin at each station to be assigned to a group of objectsbased on overall system parameters (step 502) as discussed in moredetail below. The system then identifies assigned bins correlated withobjects at each station (step 504), and updates the number of objects ateach bin at each station (step 506). The system then determines thatwhen a bin is either full or the system expects that the associatedsorting station is unlikely to see another object associated with thebin, the associated sorting station robotic system will then place thecompleted bin onto an output conveyor, or signal a human worker to comeand empty the bin (step 508), and then return to step 502.

Systems of various embodiments provide numerous advantages because ofthe inherent dynamic flexibility. The flexible correspondence betweensorter outputs and destinations provides that there may be fewer sorteroutputs than destinations, so the entire system may require less space.The flexible correspondence between sorter outputs and destinations alsoprovides that the system may choose the most efficient order in which tohandle objects, in a way that varies with the particular mix of objectsand downstream demand. The system is also easily scalable, by addingsorters, and more robust since the failure of a single sorter might behandled dynamically without even stopping the system. It should bepossible for sorters to exercise discretion in the order of objects,favoring objects that need to be handled quickly, or favoring objectsfor which the given sorter may have a specialized gripper.

In various embodiments therefore, the object processing system mayinclude a carriage 80 that shuttles back and forth on a track betweendestination bins. A central computing and control station 78communicates with other computers distributed in the other components,and also communicates with the customer information system, provides auser interface, and coordinates all processes. In other embodiments, thesystem may include a track (e.g., in a loop) along which carriages maytravel in one direction past a plurality of destination bins.

Systems of various embodiments provide numerous advantages because ofthe inherent dynamic flexibility. The flexible correspondence betweensorter outputs and destinations provides that there may be fewer sorteroutputs than destinations, so the entire system may require less space.The flexible correspondence between sorter outputs and destinations alsoprovides that the system may choose the most efficient order in which tohandle objects, in a way that varies with the particular mix of objectsand downstream demand. The system is also easily scalable, by addingsorters, and more robust since the failure of a single sorter might behandled dynamically without even stopping the system. It should bepossible for sorters to exercise discretion in the order of objects,favoring objects that need to be handled quickly, or favoring objectsfor which the given sorter may have a specialized gripper.

The system provides in a specific embodiment an input system thatinterfaces to the customer's conveyors and containers, stores objectsfor feeding into the system, and feeds those objects into the system ata moderate and controllable rate. In one embodiment, the interface tothe customer's process takes the form of a dumper from a Gaylord, butmany other embodiments are possible. In one embodiment, feeding into thesystem is by an inclined cleated conveyor with overhead flowrestrictors, e.g., baffles. In accordance with certain embodiments, thesystem feeds objects in at a modest controlled rate. Many options areavailable, including variations in the conveyor slope and speed, thepresence, size and structure of cleats and baffles, and the use ofsensors to monitor and control the feed rate.

The system includes in a specific embodiment a primary perception systemthat monitors the stream of objects on the primary conveyor. Wherepossible the primary perception system may identify the object to speedor simplify subsequent operations. For example, knowledge of the objectson the primary conveyor may enable the system to make better choicesregarding which objects to move to provide a singulated stream ofobjects.

Those skilled in the art will appreciate that numerous modifications andvariations may be made to the above disclosed embodiments withoutdeparting from the spirit and scope of the present invention.

What is claimed is:
 1. A processing system including a singulationsystem, the singulation system comprising: a conveying system for movingobjects to be processed from a source area along a first direction; adetection system for detecting objects at the conveying system, and forselecting certain selected objects for redistribution on the conveyingsystem; and a movement redistribution system for redistributing thecertain selected objects on the conveying system for providing asingulated stream of objects.
 2. The processing system as claimed inclaim 1, wherein the conveying system includes a high speed conveyor. 3.The processing system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the source areaincludes a contained area from which an in-feed cleated conveyor drawsobjects to the conveying system.
 4. The processing system as claimed inclaim 1, wherein the conveying system includes a cleated conveyor andthe movement redistribution system provides one object per cleated areaon the cleated conveyor.
 5. The processing system as claimed in claim 1,wherein the conveying system includes a conveyor that moves inincrements.
 6. The processing system as claimed in claim 1, wherein themovement redistribution system includes a robotic arm and an endeffector for grasping the certain selected objects.
 7. The processingsystem as claimed in claim 1, wherein the processing system includes aperception system, and wherein the conveying system leads to theperception system.
 8. The processing system as claimed in claim 1,wherein the processing system includes a plurality of destination areasalong a further conveying system, as well as a plurality of urgingmembers for urging objects on the further conveying system into amovable carriage that may be moved to assigned destination areas.
 9. Theprocessing system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the processing systemincludes a plurality of destination areas along a further conveyingsystem, as well as a plurality of urging members for urging objects onthe further conveying system into assigned destination areas.
 10. Asingulation system comprising: a conveying system for moving objects tobe sorted from a source area along a first direction; a selection systemfor selecting certain selected objects for redistribution on theconveying system; and a movement redistribution system forredistributing the certain selected objects on the conveying system andby returning the certain selected objects to an earlier stage of theconveying system such that a singulated stream of objects may beprovided to an object processing system.
 11. The singulation system asclaimed in claim 10, wherein the source area includes a contained areafrom which a cleated conveyor draws objects.
 12. The singulation systemas claimed in claim 10, wherein the conveying system includes aplurality of zoned areas on the conveyor.
 13. The singulation system asclaimed in claim 10, wherein the movement redistribution system providesone object per cleated area on a cleated conveyor.
 14. The singulationsystem as claimed in claim 10, wherein the conveying system includes aplurality of conveyors.
 15. The singulation system as claimed in claim10, wherein the conveying system includes a conveyor that moves inincrements.
 16. The singulation system as claimed in claim 10, whereinthe movement redistribution system includes a robotic arm and an endeffector for grasping the certain selected objects.
 17. The singulationsystem as claimed in claim 10, wherein the singulation system includes aperception system, and wherein the conveying system leads to theperception system.
 18. The singulation system as claimed in claim 10,wherein the singulation system includes a plurality destination areasalong a further section of the conveying system, as well as a pluralityof urging members for urging objects on the conveying system intoassigned destination areas.
 19. The singulation system as claimed inclaim 10, wherein the singulation system includes a pluralitydestination areas along a further conveying system, as well as aplurality of urging members for urging objects on the further conveyingsystem into a movable carriage that may be moved to assigned destinationareas.
 20. A method of providing singulation of objects, said methodcomprising the steps of: moving objects to be sorted from a source areaalong a first direction of a conveying system; detecting objects at theconveying system; selecting certain selected objects for redistributionon the conveying system; and redistributing the certain selected objectson the conveying system to provide a singulated stream of objects. 21.The method as claimed in claim 20, wherein the source area includes acontained area from which objects are drawn by an input cleatedconveyor.
 22. The method as claimed in claim 20, wherein the step ofredistributing the certain selected objects involves providing oneobject per cleated area of a cleated conveyor.
 23. The method as claimedin claim 20, wherein the step of moving the objects to be processedinvolves moving the objects on a conveyor that moves in discreteincrements.
 24. The method as claimed in claim 20, wherein the step ofmoving objects involves the use of a plurality of conveyors.
 25. Themethod as claimed in claim 20, wherein the step of detecting objectsincludes passing the object through a perception scanner.
 26. The methodas claimed in claim 25, wherein the method further includes the step ofurging an object from a further conveyor following the step of passingthe object through the perception system.
 27. The method as claimed inclaim 26, wherein the step of urging the object from the furtherconveyor involves urging the object into a movable carriage.
 28. Themethod as claimed in claim 27, wherein the movable carriage isreciprocally movable between a plurality of destination locations. 29.The method as claimed in claim 26, wherein the step of urging the objectfrom the further conveyor involves urging the object into one of aplurality of destination locations.
 30. The method as claimed in claim20, wherein the step of redistributing the certain selected objectsinvolves moving an object upstream on the conveying system from acurrent location.
 31. The method as claimed in claim 20, wherein thestep of redistributing the certain selected objects involves moving anobject toward a center of one of a plurality of zones on the conveyingsystem.